Harrison Matthews in action for Waikato Country at the U16 National Championships in Christchurch last week. Photo: Supplied
Years of hard work have paid off for Te Kūiti basketballer Harrison Matthews who represented Waikato Country at the Basketball New Zealand U16 National Championships in Christchurch last week.
Matthews, 15, was one of 12 players selected for the nationals after a demanding trial process involving up to 40 players from across the Waikato Country region.
Players attended several trial weekends where coaches assessed their ball handling, shooting, fitness and ability in game scenarios, before naming regional squads and eventually the team to contest the national championships.
Matthews has been part of the Waikato Country set-up for four years, while also representing Te Kūiti High School and playing in the weekly pathway competition this year.
Standing at 1.9 metres, the power forward believes his work ethic helped secure his place in the national squad.
“I hustle quite a lot in basketball, and I like being a strong player and I think that’s what the coaches like and that’s what they’re saying,” Matthews said.
“They wanted me to play stronger, especially with the taller, bigger guys, and they wanted me to be more mongrel,” he said.
Waikato Country qualified for the national championships after finishing fourth at the regional qualifying tournament in Tauranga as well as competing in an Easter tournament in Auckland as part of the preparation.
The national championships, held at Christchurch’s new Parakiore Recreation and Sport Centre, marked the highest level of basketball Matthews has experienced.
“I was honoured to be in that team. It was special because it’s the biggest competition I’ve ever played in,” Matthews said.
“Everyone’s a lot faster and stronger, and heaps of the players are very tall people and strong people. The level of intensity is up there,” he said.
While Waikato Country finished 20th out of 20 teams with one win from seven games, Matthews said the team with their growth throughout the week.
In pool play, Waikato Country played Canterbury A (50-115), Harbour B (58-82), Auckland B (72-94) and Nelson (44-91), before moving into the 17th-to-20th team playoffs where they picked up a win against Counties-Manukau B 89-85 along with close losses to Southland (67-69) and Counties-Manukau A (72-73).
“As a team, from regionals to nationals, every single day we were at nationals, we kept improving,” Matthews said.
“We spent a lot of time as a team together building up to these competitions and maybe we could have spent a little bit more time together, so we could have that bond for when we were on the court,” he said.
Hutt Valley won the boys’ final 86-81 after withstanding a furious second-half comeback from Auckland A to claim the U16 national title.
